King's Farm

King's Farm was a tract of land in Manhattan which is currently located between Fulton and Warren streets and Broadway and the Hudson River in present-day New York City. It was originally known as "Company's Farm" and set aside for the Dutch West India Company's civil and military servants, but, after the English conquest, the Duke of York came to own the estate and expanded it through purchasing Annetje Jans's lands (the "Bouwery Farm", founded in 1636) as far north as Chariton Street in 1670. It was renamed from "Duke's Farm" to "King's Farm" when the Duke of York became King of England in 1685 and passed through the hands of the English monarchs. In 1705, Governor Cornbury granted the entire estate to the Church of England, and it delayed its construction, slowing the expansion of New York City beyond Broadway. During the early 18th century, streets began to cross the farm, with Crown Street being the first. Trinity Church, built in 1698, expanded in size at the site. In 1767, British Army major Abraham Mortier acquired 26 acres of the farmland on a 99-year lease to build the "Richmond Hill" estate on Varick and Charlton Streets. Soon, King's Farm was engulfed by urbanization and ceased to be farmland.